Transience
by EverythingIsMagic
Summary: A collection of brief drabbles. Displaying the thoughts, emotions, and stories of the "InuYasha" cast. Traditional and Canon Pairings- All genre.
1. Transience Young InuYasha and Izayoi

This is my collection of drabbles. It will be updated whenever I write any ficlet that I won't be putting in the "By Your Side" collection. Let me know what you think!

**Title:** Transience

**Genre:** Drama/Angst

Word count: 217

Summary: A memory of childhood- young InuYasha and his mother Izayoi talk beneath a cherry blossom tree.

* * *

"Well InuYasha, cherry blossoms are also a symbol of transience."

"Transience? What's that?" The young hanyou asked, the word slipping off his tongue awkwardly. Izayoi laughed lightly at her son's stumbled question.

It means it's only around for a short while, so it's used to signify," She paused and glanced over to her curious son, voice lowering to a whisper. "When people die…" InuYasha looked up to the blooming sakura tree he and his mother sat beneath.

"Mama, you won't ever need cherry blossoms will you? You won't… die, right?"

"Oh InuYasha," She wrapped her arms around the boy in a warm embrace and smiled sadly. "Everyone dies sometime."

"Everyone?" Izayoi nodded. "That's not fair Mama…"

Deftly, she kissed his cheek and brushed a sakura petal out of his thick silver hair.

"No InuYasha… no it's not."

There was never a time that InuYasha wished his mother were wrong more than that one. For in the brevity of that same spring- he lost her.

Like a blooming sakura tree, Izayoi was to her son. Only there for fleeting moments, before she left him to the scorching heat of summer and the bitter cold of winter.

But he could never resent her, only love her and cherish her memory. As we all do the precious blossoms of spring.

* * *


	2. She Understood InuYashaKagome

**Title:** She Understood  
**Genre:** Romance/Angst  
**Pairing:** InuYasha/Kagome  
**Word count:** 100  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary:** Taking place after the events with Gatenmaru (Manga 19, Anime episode 52), InuYasha reflects on three words Kagome said to him during that most painful time.

* * *

I thought she was scared of me.  
  
She seemed cautious, quiet.  
  
Had I... shattered the trust of the first person I ever trusted myself?  
  
I told her, not to force herself to stay beside me.  
  
...But she stayed.  
  
I couldn't say how it hurt upon realizing I'd mindlessly slaughtered those soldiers, or my fear that next time _her_ blood could be staining my claws.  
  
...But I didn't have to.  
  
"InuYasha... I understand," She _knew_ what I couldn't say.  
  
And as Kagome leaned against me, her hand near mine- I squeezed back, and felt the pain and fear slowly ebb away.

* * *


	3. Awakening to Hope Kohaku and Rin

**Title:** Awakening to Hope

**By:** Kelly O'Connor  
**Info:** Done for livejournal community Iyfic(underscore)challenge. The theme was 'smile.'  
**Pairings:** Rin/Kohaku if you wish to take it that way  
**Word Count: **200  
**Summary:** He'd died with tears and been resurrected to a smile...

_**Aneue-** Older sister_

----------------------------------------------

Kohaku had died once and lived twice.

Now he knew, with his shard having been removed by the one who'd controlled him, he'd be dying again.

His memories flew through his conscious, and he found it freezing on one particular recollection.

Aneue's face, grief stricken with tears streaming. This was the memory he'd died with the first time, and the one he fell prey to death with now.

Within the depths of Kohaku's subconscious, he swore he heard the slice of a blade. But how could that be, when his life had already been stripped away?

Further confusion surfaced when he heaved a breath of air, _Why and how?_ The young boy pondered as his eyes slipped open.

Eyelids heavy, he blinked as they met with a familiar face. Her smile was bright and full of optimism.

"Kohaku-kun!" Rin piped up, reaching out towards him. With a tentative nod, the boy took her hand and stood up.

"You're all right!" Her grin grew more.

Gazing at Rin, Kohaku was hopeful. Perhaps this chance at life would be different. And unbeknownst to him, the smallest of smiles slowly crossed his features.

He'd died with tears and been resurrected to a smile.

-----------------------------------------------------


	4. Her Smile Still Lingers SesshoumaruKagur...

**Title:** Her Smile Still Lingers

**Info:** Done for livejournal community Iyfic(underscore)challenge. The theme was 'remember.' I won first for this theme, which really surprised me… especially considering that a lot of people don't like the pairing involved. (I love it.)  
Pairing: Sesshoumaru/Kagura if you wish to take it that way.  
**Word Count:** 199  
**Summary:** (WARNING- spoiler for manga chapter 374)  
Sesshoumaru knew this place...

* * *

Sesshoumaru knew this place. He walked onto the field; solitary figure brushing through the fair blossoms that sprouted from the fertile earth below. 

He had come here alone. As he always had, as he always would. Finding that solace was what he desired upon visiting this particular location.

A shift in the breeze caused Sesshoumaru to turn around, and his sharp hearing picked up the melodic cry of a sublime white bird.

Lowering his eyes to the ground, they widened ever so slightly when they met with a pale downy feather. Picking it up, the great youkai rolled its pristine surface across his hand.

A shaft of sunlight struck the feather, and Sesshoumaru let out the smallest of gasps.

Because reflected on its surface, he could have sworn flickered the remnants of a smile.

_Her_ smile, the one she'd given him as she breathed her final breaths.

With a fleeting look upward to the winged beauty who had bestowed him with this feather, Sesshoumaru spoke, "Fly free. Kagura."

Without a word more, he closed his hand around the feather and walked off, leaving the meadow of flowers behind.

Yes, Sesshoumaru knew this place indeed. He could never forget it.


	5. All Things Once Forgotten IYtachi

**Title:** All Things Once Forgotten  
**Genre:** Drama/General  
**Pairings:** Lightly implied InuYasha/Kagome and Miroku/Sango  
**Rating:** PG

**Notes:** Another IYfic(underscore)challenge entrant.

* * *

This village holds many secrets.

Secrets washed away by the ebb and flow of time and by the bloodthirsty ravages of feudal warfare.

Once upon a time was a Miko, her life brought to a tragically abrupt end.

Once upon a further time came her reincarnation. She, with assistance, vanquished the greatest of evils and purified the Shikon no Tama.

But legends _don't_ last forever. That which we etch into our memories cannot be taken into death.

Together, Miko and Hanyou forever disappeared into a time that has yet to occur. They know their story, the beginning to end. In the future, hopefully the legend flourishes again.

The Houshi and Taijiya departed the village as well. Perhaps the tales could live on via the residents of the Taijiya? Perhaps, if it indeed remained a village, instead of the ruins and dirt-caked land that it had become.

Outside the village, there is a grave that has eroded to little more than a tiny stone stump on the ground. It reads 'Kaede.'

Her village holds many secrets, but she knew that their legend would never die. It was only resting, to be resurrected by a destined pair someday in the future.


	6. Seek and Ye Shall Find Houjo Akitoki

**Note:** This drabble features Houjo Akitoki, the ancestor of modern day Houjo as featured in the second movie and anime episodes 137-140. If you haven't seen those, you'll probably be confused. No, he's not with Kagome. At the end of episode 140 he meets another woman who he ends up with. Her name was Suzaku, but she changed it to Kagome at his suggestion. I'm doing a drabble request project at my livejournal and this was Robochar/Viola player's request.

**Seek and Ye Shall Find**

By Kelly O'Connor

* * *

Houjo Akitoki often wondered why he seemed a magnet for gaining involvement in the most bizarre of perilous adventures. 

Of A woman who wished to blanket the world in eternal night, and a man who was seeking the destruction of an entire race. Oh, and of course a flamboyantly gay ninja bird who had his heart set on seizing his boyish face for some twisted collection.

Did he seek them out? Continually gaining artifacts no young man of his stature should safely be in possession of.

His mind conjured the image of a girl, feisty and determined, yet kind and devoted.

And oh so _very, very_ taken.

His quests had always ended up involving the Miko and her endearingly possessive Hanyou companion. But now those expeditions were no more, and there was no part of him that longed for their return.

A light tap on his shoulder startled Akitoki from his wayward musings, and he glanced up to meet the congenial gaze of his bright eyed wife. And at that moment he came to a conclusion, as to why his need for those voyages had ceased.

He had not been seeking adventure. He had been seeking love.

Standing up, he planted a playful kiss on the woman who had become Kagome's cheek.

Seek and ye shall find.

* * *


	7. Eulogy Higurashi Kagome

**Title:** Eulogy  
**Rating:** PG  
**Pairing:** Kagome/InuYasha  
**Notes:** This is my view of Kagome as a character, from her present to her future. The theme at iyfic(underscore)challenge this week was 'Kagome,' and so I ate it all up of course. Despite being the main female, I think she is one of the most underappreciated characters in the cast. Usually she is delegated to being just "InuYasha's girlfriend," or 'not as kick ass as Sango or Kikyou.' (Despite the fact that she's canonically stated to be more powerful than both of them, and displays an emotional strength that is one of the main things that truly cements the bonds of the InuYasha-tachi. Kikyou herself even remarks as such regarding her power.) I think she's every bit as complex a character as anyone else, even more so in some cases, so yes- yay Kagome. Feedback is much appreciated.

**Eulogy**

* * *

She'd always been an extraordinary girl.

When she was born, her mother cooed promises of greatness to quiet her cries.

Upon hearing her speak her first words, take her first steps, wear her first kimono, ace her first test, she was amazing. Not because she was beyond the ordinary, but because she was _theirs_.

At fifteen, destiny seized her in a most unorthodox manner. Hurling her into a time where such mundane things as acing tests were trivial at best.

And there the world discovered that Higurashi Kagome truly _was_ remarkable.

There fate bound its red string between a future girl and a shunned boy.

For InuYasha, she was the air he breathed. For one cannot live without air.

For those whose lives had been shattered by that cunning hell-spawned evil, she, and the powers that were her gift, had been a savior.

Her spark of fortitude didn't leave her even when the exploits of her fifteenth year were long over.

He was still there. He would not leave. And she welcomed that, the two strengthening their bond as time slipped by. When adulthood descended upon the pair, they exchanged their vows.

Now adventures consisted of nine-to-five hours and chasing wayward children around the shrine she and her husband had inherited.

And watching them grow, and loving him still, and storytelling of long ago yesterdays with the children of her children.

But age crept upon her. Although she held the key to time itself, escaping death was impossible to even the most astonishing of people.

The red string of fate held fast, and Kagome and the man she'd cheated time for slipped into the next world hand in hand.

Nevertheless those who remember, from eras five hundred years separate, profess one unanimous truth.

She'd always remained an extraordinary girl.

* * *


	8. Hello Buyo is That You? It's Me, Destiny

**Title:** Hello Buyo is That You? It's Me, Destiny.  
**Genre:** General. A bit of humor.  
**Summary:** Even the most err... obese of creatures, has a role in destiny's master plan.  
**Notes:** Done for iyfic's 'hope' theme. Buyo rocks.

* * *

Buyo had always just been the cherished Higurashi pet. His days consisted of a small assortment of select non-strenuous activities as not to overexert his exceedingly plump beanbag like body. 

There were a few things he hoped for in his nine lives:

A continuous stream of kitty chow for his unending appetite.

The love and affection he received from his humans to never cease.

And for everything he required; food, pillows, and litter-box to be located within a ten-meter radius of one another. In that setup, he could keep his waddling down to a minimal.

His ventures outside rarely procured much excitement, but even the laziest kitty needs fresh air now and then.

A tickle within his feline brain caused his ears to perk. _Nothing?_ He listened again, picking up the most faint of rustling from somewhere unfamiliar.

Within moments, pink-padded feet crept into the well-house.

Tap-tap down the stairs… nothing there.

Mrowing in exasperation, Buyo moved to exit.

Yet within moments, a familiar duo entered. Once their conversation led them downstairs, Buyo rubbed against Kagome's leg and found himself in the girl's arms.

If Buyo were more than a cat, perhaps he would register the concept of destiny. Figure out that his simple journey into the neglected well-house was _his_ role in a grand master plan destiny was unfolding.

Nevertheless as he felt the human called Kagome ripped away from behind him, even he knew that something important was happening.

Her family was distraught over the bizarre loss of their girl, and all the calico could offer was whisker-faced, fluffy-soft comfort.

However, Buyo, simple cat or no, had hope. Hope that she'd return to cuddle and cherish him once more.

No, he _knew _she would return. After all, it is said that animals have the best instinct of all.

* * *


	9. Stay Close InuYasha

**Title:** Stay Close  
**Pairing:** Kagome/InuYasha  
**Summary:** Promises are meant to be kept.  
**Note:** Ofukuro- Somewhat unrefined way of saying 'mother.' It's what InuYasha uses.

* * *

He squeezed his eyes shut as the change overtook him. It wasn't painful, more like a tingle washing over him, but the emotions that came with it were another story.

_Fear._

InuYasha was no stranger to this sensation. He'd felt it twang at his heart every time he dared venture into the village. Shatter to the very core of his soul when the possibility of losing those he held dear appeared.

He'd felt it tunnel its way into his mind when wondering if he would ever find what he desired.

* * *

The six-year-old boy had inquired of his mother, "If I am just a normal human on the new moon, can I play in the village?"

"You want friends who only accept you when the moon cycles?" Izayoi chided gently, pulling him onto her lap.

InuYasha's violet eyes brimmed with affliction. "I just want to…"

His statement was interrupted, his mother pulling him into a compassionate embrace.

"I know," She said, holding back tears.

"Will I ever find it?"

"You will, I promise you will."

Nodding, InuYasha closed his eyes, letting the warmth of her love overcome him and lull him into drowsiness.

"Stay close, please."

Tightening her grip, she kissed him on the forehead. "I will. Through all the night and always."

* * *

She never broke her promise, not until her life was extinguished.

After that, no one stayed close. No one remained by his side during the midnight-cloaked new moon.

Until her. He never asked her to stay close. His pride would have prevented such a thing.

But she did, as if an unspoken understanding led her to do so.

_I promise you…_

InuYasha glanced hesitantly towards Kagome, smiling when she rested her head upon his shoulder. Outside, the night was dark without the moon.

_Ofukuro__… I've found it._


	10. A Benevolent Spirit Chiyo and Suikotsu

**Title:** A Benevolent Spirit  
**Note:** Chiyo is one of the two primary children we see often with Suikotsu. She's the little girl who carries the baby on her back.

* * *

The melodic chanting of children's folks songs carried by the echoes of evening resonated across the tiny village that lay at the foot of Hakurei-san. 

One particular young girl hummed the tune to herself as she walked the path leading back to the village. Her yukata was stained with the residue of moist grass, and she clutched a bouquet of spring flowers.

* * *

It had been last autumn when he came… 

Appearing from nowhere, almost like a benevolent spirit arriving when she was in need.

Chiyo, along with the other orphan children of the village found comfort in life again.

When the fall flowers began to bloom, she'd ventured out and gathered them up.

Returning to the hut their doctor resided in, she approached him.

"Suikotsu-sama, I brought these for you," Chiyo offered, thrusting the bouquet forward.

Smiling tenderly, he took the flowers. "Thank you Chiyo, they're beautiful."

Tentatively, she whispered. "Suikotsu-sama, do you promise to stay here always?"

He paused, innocent eyes pensive.

Taking the young girl in his lap after a few moments, he replied. "Of course I do. There is nowhere else I'd rather be."

He'd hold them in his arms and share his warm heart. In the children, Suikotsu found a home and a purpose. In him, they'd found hope.

* * *

His hut of residence was deserted. Those who had witnessed his other side's attack on the children feared its very presence. 

Chiyo wasn't afraid.

Suikotsu couldn't keep his promise to her, but it was enough to know that the part of him that she loved had wished to.

She pushed open the flap door and entered the dusty abandoned hut.

In the corner lay a blanket and a sleeping mat.

It had been his.

The fragrant blooms reminded her of her purpose, and she walked forward, placing them upon the worn mat.

Closing her eyes, she began to sing the folk song that he'd heard often during his time with them.

_Suikotsu-sama__, I brought these for you…_


	11. Unspoken Friendship Kohaku and Kagura

**Title:** Unspoken Friendship  
**Note:** The quotes and scenario presented at the end come from chapter 369- "Kagura's Decision." There are spoilers for later manga chapters in this.

* * *

_We were more alike than I could have imagined..._

Kagura was the wind. Rapid and furious, a passionate tempest in the form of a sable-haired crimson-eyed youkai lady.

Kohaku was the earth. Somber and resolved, a moldable controllable, but stubborn surface in the form of a sad-gazed human boy.

_We seemed so different... but..._

Wind captured within a jar, struggling to break free as it swirls feverishly inside. Naraku held her heart.

Earth's clay unwillingly being shaped into a marionette, battling against the strings that belonged to its puppeteer. Naraku held his life.

_We were the same..._

No pact was made, nor any promises whispered in hiding from their master. But the discovery of that sameness led to an inevitable common bond.

_We were allies..._

Had Kagura ever known companionship? Kohaku knew she hadn't, and because of that wondered if the wind lady even considered him a friend. An ally, undoubtedly. A friend, he knew not.

But on the eve of her demise, Kagura made a sacrifice to defend the puppet, the boy, the friend she'd come to watch over.

_"Shut up and get out of here!"_

The swish of a fan and minutes later, the mount of a feather sent Kohaku away towards safety, and left Kagura in the eye of danger.

Her words had been a demand not a request, and her very orders she'd just defied.

To protect him, in the way one would protect a treasured companion.

_We were friends..._


	12. Don't Be Foolish Kikyou and Kaede

**Title: **_Don't be Foolish_  
**Rating: **PG  
**Pairings:** Implied past InuYasha/Kikyou, implied Kagome/InuYasha  
**Notes:** The second half of the drabble takes place during manga chapter seventy-eight- "A Gentle Scent."

* * *

They were polar opposites at times. 

Confident, stoic, and guarded described the guardian of the shikon no tama quite well.

Perhaps, these characteristics were reasons she was given the duty of protecting it.

But Kaede was a child. Sheltered and naïve of the perils her older sister faced on a day-to-day basis.

Often nights when her sister returned and fell asleep in the hut they shared, Kaede would contemplate the less-than-ordinary life her sister led.

"Kikyou-onee-sama should just wish the jewel away…" She whispered under her breath one night.

A shift snapped her from her musings and she felt her sister's hand upon hers.

"Kaede, don't be so foolish. This is my duty; I can't abandon it for selfish reasons."

Kaede didn't understand. Kikyou hoped someday she would.

* * *

The years had taken their toll on the current Miko of the village. Age had crept upon her, and for all purposes, Kaede was no longer the younger sister. 

Wise, compassionate, and stubborn described the elderly Miko. Although she was along in her years, her heart was no worse for wear.

One evening, her sister returned to the hut she'd once called home. She spoke to Kaede of Naraku, her bizarre reincarnation, and her desire to take the boy she'd sealed into death with her.

"Have you cut off... your lingering feelings?" Kaede had asked.

Kikyou smiled, her expression surprising the other woman. Turning to depart, she spoke, not answering the inquiry.

"We'll meet again..."

Onee-sama... How long are you going to wander for...?

Watching her younger-but-elder sister disappear, she shook her head in opposition of her sister's actions.

_Don't be foolish, Onee-sama. Your duty in this world and to that boy ended fifty-years ago. Now the girl you call reincarnation continues it… _

Kikyou didn't understand. Kaede hoped someday she would.


	13. Hidden Within Izayoi

These new three are actually old drabbles from an Izayoi collection called 'The Sixteenth Night Moon.' However, since I deleted that collection since I did not plan on continuing it, I decided to upload these as part of this one. Some of these are old, so I can't guarantee the quality.

Just as a note, none of these drabbles fall in with the third movie storyline. I really disliked the way the third movie presented the cast, as well as InuYasha's backstory. Additionally, it contradicts greatly with what little RT has provided in character profiles on his past. I use the name Izayoi merely because I do like it and so I don't have to make one up.

**Title:** Hidden Within  
**Genre:** General  
**Pairing:** Izayoi/Inu no Taishou I guess.  
**Word Count:** 291  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary:** Izayoi is not the woman they see her as. She is still just a girl.

_Sublime_, the line of suitors that visited the home of the resplendent Hime unanimously agreed on the young woman's presence.

Izayoi was indeed, the picture of a maiden. Her features were porcelain perfection and those who sought her hand could only imagine the beautiful offspring she could produce in addition to being an ideal wife.

But Izayoi was barely a woman, still a girl in many ways. Although she appeared the picture of requisite perfection, the soul of a romantic and a dreamer lay shrouded within.

Her father had always cautioned her regarding keeping her unorthodox attitude in check. It would only inhibit her in the end, wound her, and shatter the secure storybook wonderful life she led.

But no one knew of that side of the princess. She would greet them with a smile, appearing as an exquisite doll clad in the most refined of cloths.

And she would smile, warm and welcoming, but not quite as radiant as it could be if she so desired.

Once the day was through, she'd wave her hand in a flippant manner and laugh as her father once again inquired as to why she hadn't agreed to any of the marriage proposals she'd been given.

She told him "Perhaps we should wait. Maybe there'll be someone you'd rather me marry in the future?"

It was a lie of course. Love had yet to make itself known to the girl at heart, and her sleep conjured silver spun hair and noble heroics. Whoever her dream spoke of, they were not him.

Because they could never, no never touch her heart. Not because it was buried under layers of magnificent kimono, and not because it was taken.

But because it was waiting for that one…


	14. Unconditional Izayoi and InuYasha

**Title:** Unconditional  
**Genre:** General  
**Pairing:** Izayoi/Inu no Taishou. Also implied Kagome/InuYasha is you squint super hard.  
**Word Count:** 346  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary:** The former princess had been asked: "Isn't it selfish? To bring a hanyou, something guaranteed to be hated into the world?" 

It was a pregnancy like any other, but Izayoi had wondered if it would be different, feel different, grow differently. 

The boy blossoming inside her womb was dissimilar from her. His heritage did not just consist of noble human houses, but also of that most enchanting world of youkai.

She and the great youkai she'd consummated her love with did not take the decision of bringing this being into the world lightly.

The former princess had been asked: "Isn't it selfish? To bring a hanyou, something guaranteed to be hated into the world?"

This had taken the woman aback, as so filled with love and acceptance she was for the growing boy in her womb, the thought had never flittered cross her mind.

"If they hate my child for what he is, then they are not worthy of his companionship anyway," she replied curtly.

"But even so…" they continued.

"And those who love him for what he is, just a boy borne of a man and a woman's love," Izayoi paused to rub her hands over her swelling belly in an affectionate manner, "Those will be the truest companions anyone could ever desire."

At that moment, they'd silenced. For why would one want friends and lovers who did not accept every part of them anyhow?

Later on she would coo to the growing child in her stomach. "I have been cast out from my family and those who I once called friends simply because they decided that the man I love is not to their liking. It's understandable, isn't it? Humans have trouble accepting anything out of the ordinary."

Izayoi lay down on the ground and continued stroking the boy within. "Sometimes it hurts, to have only your father and a couple spare friends remaining." She smiled sweetly. "But I am not unhappy. I have learned one very important thing from this. Those who truly love you, all of you, will never, ever leave you behind. Its called unconditional love." 

_It's what I have for you… and what someday, I know you will find for yourself._


	15. Leaving Youth Behind Sessmom

**Title:** Leaving Youth Behind  
**Genre:** Romance/Introspective/Drama  
**Pairings:** Inu No Taishou/Izayoi and Inu no Taishou/Sessmom  
**Word Count:** 259  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary:** Young love isn't always true love...

The former wife of the Inu no Taishou had no regrets. Her marriage to the great youkai had given her happiness in the form of a handsome and powerful heir.

She had loved the man she'd given herself to, as one loves the passion filled summer fling they have in their youth. The joy that it had given her would never be forgotten, and she loved the Inu no Taishou of those days still.

But neither she of her youth, nor he of his existed now.

And because of that, nor did their love.

Izayoi was human; a flighty dreamy girl in the guise of a beautiful sophisticated noblewoman. The young princess was not perfect. She was not faultless.

But she understood why Inu no Taishou had chosen to intertwine his destiny with this human lady.

She was strong. She was kind. Izayoi was the woman he needed now that he was far from being a youth. He wished to protect her, wished to better himself for her.

Izayoi and the Inu no Taishou wished to grow. To take on life's responsibilities and not ignore them with the reckless abandon of young romance.

She had been his first love, but Izayoi was his destined. This, the youkai woman understood.

It did not hurt her, for it had been over one hundred years since the two shared the warmth of each other's love. Then they began to drift apart, breaking the ties of youth that held their love fast.

And her heart was unburdened and free, and would forever be.


End file.
